Go to GrowSmartPW.org for the full list of environmental and preservation organizations opposed to extensive development throughout the rural area.
“We are everywhere there are crowds, the [livestock section] being just one of many locations. When we first started doing this it was more persuasion, but the word is really getting out there and the citizens of this county are really angry. I don’t think Wheeler understands how we are turning our anger into action. The citizens working on this are really a melting pot from all walks of life, cultures, political persuasion etc. It really is America at its finest.”
Bristow Beat: Petitions to Recall Wheeler, Candland Go to the Fair
Letter from a citizen:
“To all of my Prince William County neighbors”
“One day we got an email telling us that Supervisor Pete Candland felt he had to sign with his Pageland Lane neighbors and join the residents who want to be paid somewhere between $400,000 & 1 million dollars per acre for their land by data center developers.”
“Part of me understood, he said he was the last homeowner to sign, and his home would be an island in a sea of data centers. I thought for sure then, that he would resign and continue to help with the fight behind the scenes. But no, it looks like greed took over, and Mr. Candland has made himself available to other nearby residents to try to find a buyer for their land as well. There was even an Instagram post on his wife’s IG that showed Pete signing onto “an epic venture.” Last time I had to do something that I didn’t want to do, as Pete had intimated in his email to the public, I didn’t call it an epic venture.”
“It looks like greed has taken over.”
“So many people have asked me how I have gotten so involved in trying to save the Rural Crescent, so I thought I would try to explain it. No one who knows me would have ever thought that I would dip even my pinkie toe into a political situation. But here I am, a hippie-at-heart-soccer mom who works, teaches her kids, loves God and her family, and wants to make sure that I leave Mother Earth better than I found her.”
“I am always willing to help a neighbor, in any way I can. But most of my neighbors are wildlife. I grew up on Sudley Mountain, in Catharpin. My dad and my Uncle Al developed the small mountain neighborhood in the 1960’s. When I was a child, we didn’t have to deal with the same dangers that my kids have to deal with today. My brother and I would play in the neighborhood and have to be home by dark. My dad would take us fishing in Little Bull Run on the weekends, or we would hike the hills where my dad would teach me about all the wildlife. There is a fair chance that there are more pictures of snakes, turtles, beetles, deer and turkeys than there are of my brother and me. As irritating as I may have found it back then, my dad taught me a lot.”
“When we had our first son, we decided that we wanted him to have an upbringing like I had. We bought a home that was supposed to be our forever home in the Rural Crescent because we believed that the RC would stay rural. It is now my job to teach my kids how to be good citizens, and to help their neighbors. I’ve taught them all I can remember from my dad about nature. But I also instill a responsibility in them that we have to take care of the land around us. We pick up litter in the neighborhood, we pick up litter in the Manassas National Battlefield Park, and we often pull over on the side of the road to pick up trash when it is safe.”
“I know there are many thousands of county residents who feel the same way. They moved into the Rural Crescent SPECIFICALLY because the land is so valuable for so many reasons. The land is rich in nature, wildlife, fresh well water, quality of life, peaceful parks, landscapes, and history.”
“After working so hard for so long, we finally found our dream home, right where we wanted to be, and now ALL of it is being threatened. The quality of life that we have built, with hard work, grit, and determination is all at risk.”
“One of the things that makes this so upsetting is that I thought we had a board member who would fight for us. When people would ask me if there was a chance to stop the data centers, I said YES, Pete is on our side! He is really concerned because he lives off of Pageland. Boy, was I wrong!!”
“This is why I fight. At first it was concern for the environment, then it turned into worry for our neighborhood. Then, I saw the awful propaganda the Digital Gateway was displaying. I learned that all the environmental groups were against this destruction of rural acreage, but no one had the money to advertise like the Gateway landowners did. I am really concerned that the urbanization of the entire county that Chair Wheeler and the majority on this board are pushing will have a truly terrible effect on all residents of our county.”
“I am going to fight, grass-roots style. There comes a time when democracy and representation is not defined by what letter is by your name. It is defined by your integrity. So, I’m in this for the long haul, this is why I fight.”
“PLEASE sign the recall petitions for Pete Candland and Ann Wheeler. Help me – help all of us.” – Jessica Buhl